Yash and Sachi Maniar in Bangalore, India’s The Alternative

The Zero-plate revolution: Where you can eat, throw, compost, and grow, January 2015

“As soon as Yash Maniar suggests a chat over coffee, I realise that this is going to be no ordinary meeting. During the course of the evening, there will be several times when I am acutely aware of the number of tissues I use, the material of the cups I drink from and how much cutlery accompanies my plate of pasta. So, what is it about Yash that makes me so mindful of my actions?”

“Yash Maniar (24) and his sister, Sachi (27) are the founders of Shunya Alternatives, a Mumbai based start-up that sells 100% compostable tableware made from bagasse, a biodegradable sugarcane by-product. Although the siblings have always been conscious of their food and product choices and their impact on the environment, the spark for Shunya was lit when they were at their favourite doughnut joint, eating out of a Styrofoam plate that they trashed barely five minutes later, almost clean, save a smear of chocolate. This was followed by a visit to the beach only to find that the garbage from a grounded ship prevented them from entering the water. This got the two really thinking.”